Legal Aspects of Terrorism

Federal Laws and Guidelines:

Proposed Federal Laws and Guidelines:
State Laws and Guidelines:
Caselaw Developments & News:

• Lawfulness of a Lethal Operation Directed Against a U.S. Citizen Who Is a Senior Operational Leader of Al-Qa'ida or An Associated Force (2011).
• The Military Commissions Act of 2006: Analysis of Procedural Rules and Comparison with Previous DOD Rules and the Uniform Code of Military Justice (updated Sep. 27, 2007). http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/RL33688.pdf
• National Response Plan, Department of Homeland Security, 426 pgs.(January 6, 2005). Describes how federal agencies will work with state, local, and tribal governments in the event of an emergency--naturally occurring or terrorist imposed. [PDF]
• S. 2845, the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004, as passed by the Congress. [PDF]
• The President's Memorandum to the Director of Central Intelligence regarding the strengthening Central Intelligence Agency capabilities and Memorandum to the Attorney General regarding further strengthening of Federal Bureau of Investigation capabilities (11-23-2004).
• Final Report of The National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (also known as the 9-11 Commission). July 22, 2004. 7.22 megabyte file. [PDF].
• SENATE INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE REPORT ON THE U.S. INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY'S PREWAR INTELLIGENCE ASSESSMENTS ON IRAQ (Released July 9, 2004) The Senate Select Committee On Intelligence Released Its 521-Page Report, Unanimously Approved By The Committee, Detailing Pre-War Intelligence Regarding Iraq's Weapons Of Mass Destruction Programs, Ties To Terrorists, Threat To Regional Stability And Violations Of Human Rights. The Report Was Heavily Redacted By The Central Intelligence Agency Prior To Release. Complete Iraq Report (24 MB - CAUTION Large File) [PDF] http://news.findlaw.com/hdocs/docs/iraq/sic70904iraqrpt.pdf
• Report to the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States: The FBI's Counter-terrorism Program Since September 2001. [PDF] 80 pages, (FBI, April 14, 2004).
• "Risks Facing Key Border and Transportation Security Program Need to Be Addressed," U.S. General Accounting Office Report GAO-03-1083 to Congressional Committees 9/17/2003 (PDF, 104 pp.). http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d031083.pdf
• Memorandum of Understanding on the integration and use of screening information to protect against terrorism (Sep. 16, 2003). [PDF] http://news.findlaw.com/hdocs/docs/terrorism/fed91603memund.pdf
• Comprehensive list of legislation inspired by the attack of Sept. 11, 2001 (on Thomas) http://thomas.loc.gov/home/terrorleg.htm
• Declassified version of the Congressional joint inquiry report on the September 11 terrorist attacks, released July 2003, following a seven-month declassification process. The 858 page document (in a 6.5mb PDF file) is at:
  http://www.fas.org/irp/congress/2002_rpt/911rept.pdf
• Revised Justice Department Guidelines, issued by the Attorney General on May 30, 2002. Includes guidelines on "General Crimes, Racketeering and Terrorism Investigations," "FBI Undercover Operations," "Confidential Informants," and "Lawful, Warrantless Monitoring of Verbal Communications."
• Department of Justice Emergency Preparedness: Guidance and General Information. Justice Management Division (February 2003).
• "Patterns of Global Terrorism" Report 2003, U.S. State Department (April 2004). (A 7.4 megabyte .pdf file). Individual sections may be downloaded in .pdf format here. Individual sections of the report may be access in .html format here. NOTE:  Corrected Year in Review, Appendix A, and Appendix G were posted on June 22, 2004. (Numbers in the overall report text, specifically numbers of killed and wounded, will subsequently be revised to reflect the corrected Appendices. Until that occurs, reference should be made to these supplemental files). Also, a new fact sheet Chronology of Non-Significant International Terrorist Incidents, 2003 was released on June 22, 2004. (An International Terrorist Incident is judged non-significant if it does not result in a loss of life or serious injury to persons, major property damage (more than $10,000), and/or is not an act or attempted act that could reasonably be expected to create the conditions noted).
• "Patterns of Global Terrorism" Report 2002, U.S. State Department (April 2003). (A 40.3 megabyte .pdf file). Individual sections may be downloaded in .pdf format here. Individual sections of the report may be accessed in .html format here.
• "Patterns of Global Terrorism" Report 2001, U.S. State Department (May 2002). (A 34 megabyte .pdf file). General description of report (with links to particular sections) at: http://news.findlaw.com/hdocs/docs/dos/trrpt2001/
• Military Tribunal Rules -- Military Commission Order issued by the U.S. Dept. of Defense (Mar. 21, 2002).
• OSHA guidelines on assessing risks of anthrax in the workplace (Nov. 16, 2001).
• President Bush's Military Order: Retention, Treatment and Trial of Certain Non-Citizens in the War Against Terrorism (Nov. 13, 2001).
• Federal Bureau of Prisons: Rule, "National Security, Prevention of Acts of Violence and Terrorism," 66 Federal Register 55061-55066 (Oct. 31, 2001).
• Text of the anti-terrorism guidelines issued by the Justice Dept. (Oct. 30, 2001).
  Link » http://www.epic.org/privacy/terrorism/DOJ_guidance.pdf
• Presidential Executive Order: Critical Infrastructure Protection in the Information Age (Oct. 16, 2001).
  Link » http://www.iwar.org.uk/cip/resources/bush/executive-order.htm
• H.R. 5934 would express the sense of Congress that the public safety exception to the constitutional requirement for Miranda warnings allows unwarned interrogation of terrorism suspects for as long as is necessary to protect the public from pending or planned attacks when a significant purpose of the interrogation is to gather intelligence and not solely to elicit testimonial evidence.
• Federal Efforts to Address the Threat of Bioterrorism: Selected Issues for Congress, Congressional Research Service (March 2010).
  Link » http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/terror/R41123.pdf
• Pending legislation Congress is considering: the State Bioterrorism Preparedness Act (H.R. 3153 & S. 1520); the Cyber Security Enhancement Act of 2001 (H.R. 3482); and the Cyberterrorism Preparedness Act of 2002 (S. 1900).
• Proposed Preparedness Against Domestic Terrorism Act of 2001 to help prepare the country for acts of terrorism and natural disasters, such as a fire, flood, explosion or other catastrophe.
• Proposed Model State Emergency Health Powers Act, drafted at the request of the Centers for Disease Control by the Center for Law and the Public's Health (Johns Hopkins and Georgetown Universities), released on Oct. 30, 2001.
• Florida's Weapons of Mass Destruction hoax and threat law (2000).
• On Dec. 17, 2002, the City of Oakland, CA, became the 20th municipality to pass a resolution barring its employees from cooperating with federal officials who investigate city residents under the USA Patriot Act, if the request is "in violation of individuals' civil rights or civil liberties."
• Second Circuit rules that the Dept. of Justice must release a memo on the legal basis for using drone strikes to kill American citizens abroad. New York Times Co. v. United States, #13-422-cv, 2014 U.S. App. Lexis 7387 (2nd Cir.).
• Report, Detention of U.S. Persons as Enemy Belligerents, Congressional Research Service, #R42337 (April 11, 2012).
• Report, Federal Cost Estimates for Security Classification Activities (FY 2011)).
• Report, The State Secrets Privilege and Other Limits on Litigation Involving Classified Information, Congressional Research Service #R40603 (May 28, 2009).
• Federal court denies a Writ of Habeas Corpus to an "enemy combatant" in military custody. "It is not necessary ... that petitioner actually fire a weapon against the U.S. or coalition forces in order for him to be classified as an enemy combatant ... Petitioner has not only admitted to serving under an al Qaeda military commander, but his close ties to Taliban and al Qaeda affiliated forces as a member of the Arab Brigade unit, albeit in a non-front-line capacity, is more than enough." Al Bihani v. Obama, #05-1312, 2009 U.S. Dist. Lexis 5713 (D.D.C.).
• U.S. Supreme Court in Boumediene v. Bush, No. 06-1195, 2008 U.S. Lexis 4887, rules that aliens detained at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba as enemy combatants after their capture in Afghanistan or elsewhere overseas are constitutionally entitled to pursue claims for habeas corpus, and finds that the procedures provided in a 2005 statute for review of the detainees' status are inadequate and constitute an unconstitutional suspension of the writ of habeas corpus. In another case, Munaf v. Geren, No. 06-1666, 2008 U.S. Lexis 4888, decided the same day, June 12, 2008, the Court ruled that the habeas corpus statute applies to U.S. citizens held overseas by U.S. military forces, such as in Iraq, even if those forces are operating as a component of an multinational coalition. The U.S. citizens being detained had traveled voluntarily to Iraq and are alleged to have committed crimes there. The Court further ruled, however, that the particular plaintiffs in that case were not entitled to relief to enjoin the U.S. from transferring them to the custody of Iraqi authorities for criminal prosecution.
• New York appellate panel affirms a jury verdict that the Port Authority was more than two-thirds responsible for the 1993 terrorist bombing of the World Trade Center that killed six persons and injured more than a thousand. Nash v. Port Auth. of N.Y. & N.J., #129074/93, 2008 N.Y. App. Div. Lexis 374, 2008 NY Slip Op. 03991 (1st Dept.).
• "Situation of detainees at Guantánamo Bay, " U.N. Commission on Human Rights (Feb. 2006).
  Military Commissions:
• Supreme Court decision: Hamdan v. Rumsfeld, #05-184 (Jun. 29, 2006).
• Dept. of Defense Rules for Military Commissions: Analysis of Procedural Rules and Comparison with Proposed Legislation and the Uniform Code of Military Justice (updated Jul. 25, 2006).
• Military Commissions in the Global War on Terrorism (July 6, 2006).
• Incarceration of suspected terrorists: U.S. Supreme Court rules that foreign nationals detained in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, captured in Afghanistan hostilities, have a right to access to U.S. courts to challenge the legality of their detention, and that U.S. citizen detained as an "enemy combatant" for allegedly fighting against the U.S. in Afghanistan, also had a due process right to access to a "neutral decision maker" to challenge the factual basis for his detention. In a third case involving a U.S. citizen detained as an "enemy combatant" on U.S. soil for alleged involvement in terrorist conspiracy, Court does not reach ultimate issues because of procedural defects in court filing. Rasul v. Bush, No. 03-334, 2004 U.S. Lexis 4760; Hamdi v. Rumsfeld, No. 03-6696, 2004 U.S. Lexis 4761; Rumsfeld v. Padilla, No. 03-1027, 2004 U.S. Lexis 4759.
• ACLU suit against the Secret Service: A civil action was filed on behalf of various organizations and demonstrators, naming the Secret Service and the Philadelphia Police. It complains that officers and agents violated the free speech rights of anti-President protesters.
• Complaint in Muslim Community Assn. v. Ashcroft and Mueller (.pdf format). (lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of Section 215 of the USA PATRIOT Act, expanding FBI power to obtain records and other "tangible things" sought for an ongoing foreign intelligence, counterintelligence, or international terrorism investigation).
• In Re: D-J-, Respondent, 23 I&N Dec. 572 (A.G. 2003). (.pdf format). Interim decision #3448. April 17, 2003 decision of U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft. He found that illegal immigrants could be held indefinitely without bond if their cases present national security concerns. The opinion was requested by the Homeland Security Department, which now has authority over most immigration matters, after the Board of Immigration Appeals upheld a judge's decision to release a Haitian asylum-seeker on $2,500 bond. Ashcroft ordered that this decision be vacated, and that the asylum-seeker be denied bond and detained "pending appropriate disposition and proceedings respecting his status under the immigration laws."
• In Re: Sealed Case No. 02-001 (Nov. 18, 2002). Federal appellate ruling overturning a May 2002 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court opinion and holding that the USA Patriot Act provides the government with much discretion in the use of wiretaps in investigations of terror and espionage. (.pdf format).
• Cases on Airline Liability for Terrorist Acts, Civil Suits Against Terrorists and Terrorist Organizations, Foreign Terrorist Organizations, Pre-Boarding Searches, International Searches and Seizures and Selective Prosecution:
  Link » http://news.findlaw.com/legalnews/us/terrorism/cases/background.html
• NYC postal workers' Complaint against the Postmaster General, alleging a failure to protect them from anthrax.
  Link » http://news.findlaw.com/cnn/docs/usps/smithpttr102901cmp.pdf
• News about "hoax" cases (false reports of terrorist activity):
  Link » http://news.findlaw.com/legalnews/us/terrorism/cases/hoax.html

Other Terrorism Information Links:

• Countering Violent Extremism in the United States, Congressional Research Service (Feb. 2014).
  Link » http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/homesec/R42553.pdf
• Detention of U.S. Persons as Enemy Belligerents, Congressional Research Service (2013).
  Link » http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/R42337.pdf
• Terrorism, Miranda, and Related Matters, Congressional Research Service Report (Apr. 2013).
  Link » http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/terror/R41252.pdf
• Dirty Bombs, Congressional Research Service Report 7-5700 (June 2011).
  Link » http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/nuke/R41891.pdf
• American Jihadist Terrorism: Combating a Complex Threat, Congressional Research Service (2010).
  Link » http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/terror/R41416.pdf
• Costs of Major U.S. Wars, Congressional Research Service (2010). http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/RS22926.pdf
• GAO report 10-401T: Better use of terrorist watchlist information and improvements in deployment of passenger screening checkpoint technologies could further strengthen security. (Jan. 2010)
• Military Guide to Terrorism in the Twenty-First Century (Ver. 5.0, 15 Aug. 2007). http://www.fas.org/irp/threat/terrorism/index.html
• State Dept. List of Foreign Terrorist Organizations (2005).
  http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/65479.pdf
• A British government report on intelligence regarding weapons of mass destruction generally echoes the criticisms presented by others but also stops short of assigning personal culpability for intelligence and policy failures. See a copy of the report entitled "Review of Intelligence on Weapons of Mass Destruction" (the Butler Committee report), July 14, 2004 here (216 pages, 1 MB PDF file): http://www.fas.org/irp/world/uk/butler071404.pdf
• "Terrorists and Suicide Attacks," a report by the Congressional Research Service of the Library of Congress (Aug. 28, 2003). [PDF]  
  Link » http://www.fas.org/irp/crs/RL32058.pdf
• American Bar Assn. Task Force on Terrorism and Military Commissions (Jan. 2002).
  Link » http://www.abanet.org/leadership/military.pdf
• ANSER Institute for Homeland Security, a nonprofit public service research organization, founded in 1956. It publishes the Journal of Homeland Security and a free, weekly e-mail newsletter.
  Link » http://www.homelandsecurity.org
• "Iraq’s Weapons of Mass Destruction: The Assessment of the British Government," presented by the Rt. Hon. Tony Blair, P.M. (Sept. 2002). [PDF format]
  Link » http://www.aele.org/uk-iraq.pdf
• Law review articles on biological or chemical threats and terrorism
  Link » http://www.aele.org/mstrlist.html#Biological
• Law review articles on terrorism (Univ. of Wash. site)
  Link » http://lib.law.washington.edu/ref/terrorart.html
• National Academy Press (26 recent publications available on-line, on science and policy issues surrounding terrorism and security).
  Link » http://www.nap.edu/terror/
• New Scientist Magazine, special report on Bioterrorism and Bioweapons.
  Link » http://www.newscientist.com/hottopics/bioterrorism/
• Office of Domestic Preparedness (ODP)
  Link » http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/odp/
• Police Executive Research Forum White Paper Series on Terrorism: (Volume I: Local-Federal Partnerships; Volume II: Working With Diverse Communities. Coming soon Volume 3: Preparing for and Responding to Bioterrorism, Volume 4: Intelligence and Information Sharing, Volume 5: Law Enforcement Partnerships with the Department of Homeland Security: Working Together to Address Terrorism and Enhance Community Policing. [PDF] (Must first enter website either with a registered password or else as a guest at http://www.policeforum.org before clicking following link):
  http://policeforum.mn-8.net/docs/docapp.aspx?_command=list&fid=6792